Spirits of the Forest
by Pagen Godess
Summary: The days of gods and demons be long past. Or at least they were supposed to be. What will become of the world when a five year old Naruto meats the spirit of a familiar man in the forest surrounding his home? On hold till Naruto Manga ends so I can play with things from shippuden.


Chapter 1

Air rushed into his lungs as if it were the first breath he had ever taken. Minato blinked blue eyes barley able to focus on the canopy of green above him. It came as a surprise because the green above him was the last thing he'd expected to see. He'd expected either pitch black or burning white to be what had greeted his eyes. The green before him wasn't right.

He was dead. He knew that he was. Both he and Kushina had died sealing the nine tailed fox into their newborn son or at least he was sure that they had. He was almost positive that they had but if he was dead then why was he seeing green? Was it some sort of cruel joke meant to give him false hope? Minato knew that he was supposed to be either trapped in the stomach of the Shinigami or trapped in the chakra that he'd put into his son's seal. It was only when another breath passed his lips that he realized that he had to be alive. He was breathing and as far as he knew dead people didn't breathe.

That and the light from the sun was making his eyes hurt. It was the same type of pain that attacked his eyes whenever he been in a very dark room and stepped outside into the sunlight. Not to mention that he felt like he'd trained until he'd dropped from exhaustion which was actually something that he tended to do more than Kushina. She was smarter than him when it came to that he supposed. And really now that he cared to think about it everything seemed to point to him being alive, if not entirely well.

There was after all no other explanation for why he was laying in the middle of the forest outside of the Hidden Leaf or at least none that he could think of. He was sure that his current state of being would have had Kushina laughing at him. The thought of his wife had Minato springing up to his feet. If he was alive then that must mean that there was a chance that Kushina was alive too! She'd been hurt badly and very weak during the sealing but if he was alive then there was a very good chance that she had survived as well! After all there was no creature on Earth or in Heaven that could out stubborn his wife.

And if she was alive then he knew exactly where she'd be because if she was anywhere then she'd be in the village probably worried sick because his body couldn't be found. She'd be waiting for him with Naruto. His family was waiting for him. Thinking about his wife and his son had him running for the village as fast as his legs could carry him. He'd kept his family waiting long enough. Tree branches tore at his arms and bushes at his legs as he ran across the forest floor.

He wasn't even going to attempt to travel by tree with how tired he felt. With his luck he'd have ended up falling out of a tree and breaking his neck. Needless to say that would have been very counter productive. So Minato ran for all he was worth. He didn't care one bit about the aches and pains in his body. All he wanted to do at that moment was go and see his wife and child and nothing was going to stop him from doing just that. Every step he took was a step closer to the village and a step closer to his family. Minato was so focused on making his way towards the wall that surrounded his home that he didn't notice the white spirits that were watching him as he ran by.

In fact a few of the little creatures chased after him for a few moments before stopping and joining others of their kind amongst the forests ancient tree's. They watched the man with what might have been amusement their tiny white heads clicking like rattles as they twisted and turned on their necks. Minato of course noticed nothing at all as he ran. He didn't notice the small white creatures watching him or the much larger creature that walked slowly behind him staying out of his sight for the time being. He most certainly didn't notice that the closer he got to the village the more his appearance changed.

"Just a little further. Just a little further to the village and to Kushina and Naruto." Minato repeated this over and over again. It was almost as of it were a personal mantra or perhaps it was simply a deep need being given voice too. It was hard to tell when it came to the grinning maniac running at full speed towards Konoha's outer wall and not paying attention to what was happening to his own person.

A whoop of joy made its way out of the blonde's mouth before he could stop it when his eyes landed on the familiar white wall surrounding his home. Now all he had to do was channel enough chakra to get himself over the wall and back home. The proper procedures could be damned for all he cared! Besides he was the Hokage and he could do as he damn well pleased! Nothing was going to slow him down Hiruzen-sama could yell at him all he wanted to about his lack of protocol later.

Minato began focusing chakra into his feet as he got closer to the wall. Once he was close enough he jumped and placed his foot on the wall. He seemed to hang in the air for a few seconds before plummeting back down to the ground. Minato grunted as he felt his body hit and pain ran up his back. The pain didn't last long however and he was back on his feet again a few seconds later.

"What the hell?" he muttered under his breath as he looked at the wall before him.

"Why didn't that work? I know I had enough chakra." Minato blinked at the wall before looking down at his hands. What he saw shook his to the every core of his being. His hands were transparent! For a moment Minato considered that he might be caught in a genjutsu but that thought was shot down when he looked at the rest of his body. His whole body was transparent!

"Am I some sort of spirit?" Minato asked in an oddly calm voice. It wasn't that he wasn't surprised or confused, because he was, it was just that he really couldn't seem to force himself out of the shock that had taken hold to do anything other than ask that quiet question.

"Yes, you are a spirit."

Minato's body jerked around at the sound of the soft voice that answered him. Standing before him was a fox but it didn't look like any normal fox. The fox before him had fur that was white as snow with vine like green designs running through the white. The thing that caught his attention the most however were the white pearl like eyes that were fixed on him. They were whiter than any of the Hyuuga's eyes. For half a moment Minato was sure that he was looking at some sort of fox summon.

That was of course before old academy lessons smacked him over the back of his head. The fox before him wasn't a summon but a spirit and not just any spirit but not just any spirit a forest spirit. Minato blinked his blue eyes wide with shock. He'd heard tales of the spirits that were supposed to live in and protect the forest but he'd never actually seen them. He hadn't been the type of person that could.

Kushina on the other hand had been close to the spirits that lived in water but that had been because of her status as the fox's jinchuuriki and because she'd been a water element. If anyone the fox spirit should be approaching his wife. It didn't make any sense for the spirit to approach him instead.

"Tell me what's going on?" Minato demanded. The spirit before him looked at him with pity in her eyes as she sat on the ground her tail curling around her feet. Almost immediately flowers and grass began to grow around her.

"I called you here from your place in the death god's stomach. I feel that you may be of use to me." Minato blinked and swallowed. He was still terribly confused but by the looks of things he was going to get some answers at least.

"Why? Why me? Why not contact Kushina?" Minato asked. He didn't quite care if he was being disrespectful at the moment. He wanted answers and he wanted them yesterday. The spirit before him didn't seem to take any offense to his lack of manners at all. In fact she seemed to find him amusing.

"Because Minato Namikaze, I have need of you and the world has need of your child. As for your wife. I'm afraid that I couldn't pull her from her resting place like I could you. Kami wouldn't allow it."

Minato was sure that his heart had stopped beating (if it had ever started again) upon the mention of his wife and child. So Kushina had died after all. He had hoped that she had lived but now he knew the truth. Their child was alone in the world. Fear gripped his being for the fox had mentioned his son as well. What could the world need with his son when the boy in question was merely a baby?

"Come Hokage-sama we have much to talk about and I have much to explain."

"No, I want to see my son." Minato's voice was firm and he was prepared to fight and argue until he got what he wanted.

"In time you will see him but for now…"

"No! I want to see my son now! My wife is dead but my child lives. I want to see Naruto."

The fox sighed and shook her head. "If you truly feel that you must go then go. I will not stop you but know this if you do go he shall not see you, hear you, feel you, smell you, or feel your touch. In the walls of the village you will be nothing but a ghost and you son is not yet old enough to even know you are there."

Minato blinked and turned to look at the wall behind him. He wanted to see his child so badly that it was almost a physical pain. But would it be worth going and not being able to interact with his baby. He want to pick Naruto up and hold him close and run his fingers through his hair but he wouldn't be able too. Minato looked down at his hands. They hadn't changed one bit since he'd last looked. They were still translucent.

"If I go with you will I ever be able to see my son?" Minato asked his voice full of sorrow. The fox could see the sorrow in the man before her and hear it in his voice.

"Yes, you will get to see your son and so much more. We must wait for him to come to the forest and for him to see the Kodama. When that happens everything will be set right Minato Namikaze I give you my word." The fox said nothing more as she rose from her spot on the ground turned and began walking away.

Minato made no move to follow at least not at first. His gaze was fixed on the ground in front of him where the fox had sat and where it had stepped for there were plants and flowers growing from each imprint in the grass. It didn't take long for his gaze to shift from the grass to the village wall. Some part of him knew that it would be worth waiting to see his son.

If what the fox implied then when they finally met he'd be able to do more than simply watch his child. Minato swallowed the guilty lump in his throat as he turned and began following the fox's footprints. He didn't want to leave but he was going to. He needed to find out what was going on and the fox spirit was willing to give him answers. For now he would listen and wait for his son to find him. It was all he could do.

5 Years Later

Sunlight poured through the leaves of the forests canopy and onto the ground below leaving spots of light and shadow that shifted in the wind. The grass and moss beneath his bare feet were the softest things he'd ever felt in his young life and would remain so for years to come. There were times when he was quite sure that the forest was his home and not the village that was hidden amongst its leaves.

Not that he didn't love his village with all his heart, it was just that the animals that lived in the forest were much nicer to him than the people of the village were. Though it wasn't often that they'd let him touch them. Well he'd have to make an exception for Jiji because he was quite sure that the old Hokage cared for him a great deal even if he wasn't truly family.

A soft breeze blew bright blond hair into a pair of blue eyes that rivaled even the sky in their beauty. The day was sunny and bright with only the occasional breeze blowing through the trees. It was a perfect day to play in the forest and Naruto planned on taking advantage of every moment that he could before he had to go home.

The last thing he needed was for Jiji to send the masked men after him again. He'd gotten in trouble the last time that that had happened and Jiji had threatened to make him stay in the village and not let him out into the forest anymore if he wasn't back inside by the time it got dark out. He didn't have any reason to worry however because he still had a long time to go before the sun set and he had to go home.

That was one of the good things about spring and summer. The days were longer and he got to stay outside and play longer. Naruto laughed as he ran through the tree's. There was something running in front of him that he'd never seen before and he wanted to know what it was. Some small part of his mind tried to focus on the lecture that Jiji had given him about poisonous animals but it failed. It didn't matter anyways.

The one time he'd seen a snake that might have been poisonous it had fled from him like he was something big and mean. Snakes never bothered him for some reason. That reason however wasn't important enough for his five year old mind to focus on for any length of time not when there was something more interesting for it to focus on. Not that it mattered anyways because he knew that the thing he was chasing wasn't a snake.

It had legs for one thing and it was running on two feet like he did and it looked kinda human. At least what he could see of it whenever it was in the spots of sunlit forest floor looked human. It wasn't quite like him however. It was very small and white for one thing and it wasn't wearing any cloths for another. Then there was its face. The few times it had turned back and looked at him he hadn't been able to see any eyes or a mouth. Instead there were what appeared to be black holes of various sizes for its mouth and eyes. If the little thing didn't seem so fascinating and friendly he might have been scared of it. He wasn't however and that was all that mattered.

He had no fear of the thing before him. It meant him no harm just like he meant it no harm and of that he was certain. Or at least as certain as he could be. He'd always been a good judge of character. It probably had something to do with the fact that all but a few of the villagers didn't like him.

He was very good at telling which one's meant him harm and which ones didn't. He wasn't aware of it them but this sense had saved his life on more than one occasion and it would continue to do so in the years to come. Naruto smiled as the little white figure looked back at him again and motioned to him with one small white arm. He didn't know what it was but it wanted him to follow and he was going too no matter where it took him.

As the sound of running water reached his ears the little creature seemed to slow in its running. The reason why was just ahead. There was one river that ran through the village and while it was calm where it wound there it wasn't here. The river before him was rushing forward like water released from a dam. The current was fast and dangerous. It was also something that he couldn't cross.

"I can't cross this." Naruto said as he took a step back. "I don't know how to swim yet." The little creature at his feet didn't seem at all bothered by that fact. There was a sound like a rattle as it shook its head and motioned towards him again before it began running upstream. It looked back after it had gone few feet and motioned towards Naruto again. Naruto blinked and watched it with weary blue eyes. It seemed almost insistent that he follow it.

It was entirely possible that it knew a way across the river that was safe for him. As it turned out he was right. About forty feet upstream a large tree had fallen and formed a natural bridge over the raging waters. The tree was tall enough the there was a good ten feet resting on the riverbank on either side of the water and wide enough that he could walk across with room to spare.

Naruto watched as his white companion climbed up the fallen tree and stood so that it was just about face to face with him. The little white creature stared at him for a moment before it began walking across the fallen tree only stopping once a few feet across to check and see if he was following.

"I'm coming." Naruto said, grinning. It took him a moment to make his way up onto the tree but once he was there he followed behind his guide just as he had been doing before. The little creature seemed satisfied that he was following and began running again.

"Hey! Wait up!" Naruto shouted as he walked. He wasn't sure if he should begin running after it or not. The bark underneath his feet was wet and the last thing he wanted to do was fall into the river below. The little white creature didn't listen to him however and kept running across the tree. Naruto huffed as it became less visible.

At the rate he was going he'd have to start running or else he'd loose sight of it. Naruto growled slightly as he watched the white speck on the other side of the river. "Wait!" he called as he began running towards the other side. The last thing he wanted was to be left behind and if he had the power to prevent that then he wasn't going to let it happen.

It didn't matter however for halfway across the fallen tree one of his feet hit a patch of moss and slipped and before he even really knew what was going on he was plunging down in to the rapid river below him. He didn't even have time to gasp in shock before he was pulled under by the swift current. In fact the last thing he was really aware of what the white speck that was watching him from the other side. Some part of his mind was quite sure that the little creature looked worried.

After that there was nothing but the water that he was trapped underneath and an occasional glimpse of light on the top of the water. Panic began to set in when he realized that no matter how much he tried he couldn't seem to make it back to the surface of the water. He felt trapped by the current that was pulling him down the river. The feeling of water forcing itself into his mouth and down his throat hurt more than anything than he'd ever felt before and some distant part of his mind seemed to realize that he just might drown.

If that happened then he'd never get a chance to be a ninja or Hokage like Jiji was. He'd never get the chance to make the people in the village to acknowledge him like he wanted them too. Had he been able to he might have cried for what he was going to loose but he couldn't. That wasn't the only thing he couldn't do however. In fact the list of things that he couldn't do seemed to be growing longer by the minute. Couldn't breathe, couldn't move, couldn't think.

The only thing he could do was try to get above water and watch as black took over his vision. It wasn't long before he couldn't even move at all. Naruto was more than sure at that moment that he was going to die but he couldn't fight anymore and the black seemed to want him very badly. Blue eyes drifted shut as if their owner had decided that it was time for a nap. Before he managed to slip away completely however Naruto was only half aware of something wrapping around him. If he hadn't known any better he might have thought that they were arms.

oooooo

This chapter probably sucked royally. I don't think I have Minato's character down very well. I can't help it though. He was logical and smart and he seems less likely to freak out over things unless he's insanely worried or really pissed.

I also left a lot of holes in this chapter though some of them were for a reason. There are things that will be explained in the chapters to come though feel free to ask me questions. If I can answer I will. Oh, and I plan on updating this about once a month maybe twice if my muse is feeling lively.

Reviews make happy writers just like California makes happy cows.


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